Somerset beef in Somerset cider

The National Mark Calendar of Cooking has braised beef for November, so in my foodie month I’mm going to share not their recipe, but mine and as we’re in Somerset, we have to use the local product, don’t we? Here’s a post from three years ago:

I’ve seen so many recipes for beef cooked in beer or wine, and cooked so many dishes with beef and beer or wine… I have also seen and cooked plenty of recipes using cider with pork and also with chicken…. but I’ve never seen a recipe for beef in cider. Considering I live in Somerset, the cider county, I’m surprised I haven’t come across it before! This recipe comes from near Glastonbury and has the unusual but lovely addition of one of my favourites, butter beans.

I really wish I liked cider; it’s the local drink, produced in many farms and businesses in our county, from local fruit using traditional methods… but somehow I just don’t enjoy it. However, using it in cooking is different, then I love it!

½ lb tomatoes, sieved

6 oz butter beans – soaked in boiling water over night or a can of butter-beans

½ lb sliced onions

1½ lb beef in 1″ cubes, dredged in 1 oz flour

¾ pint cider

1 oz beef dripping or butter

fry the onions, add the beef and fry until brown

add the drained beans, beef and onions to a casserole

deglaze the pan with the tomatoes and cider and add to casserole

cook in a moderate oven for 2½ hours

I think I might like to try this with a few slices of apple added halfway through the cooking, a dessert apple which will keep its shape… I might also add some cloves, a spice which has a traditional association with apples… Yes, I’ll have a go at this!